Manchester United player Ashley Young has joked about being a member of “the full-back club” as he sent a message to teammate Rafael.

The Brazilian right-back became the latest United player to join Twitter on Monday, on the same day his club made it five consecutive wins with a 2-1 victory away to Southampton.

And in a welcome message Young wrote, “Good to see another member of the full-back club(!) on Twitter.”

Young is more commonly known as a left-winger but under Louis van Gaal the 29-year-old has been utilised in a 3-5-2 formation first trialled on United’s pre-season tour.

Young shone back then but later suffered an injury that robbed him of much of the season to date. However despite featuring as more of a wing-back against Southampton Young has also been used as a more traditional left-back in recent wins against Hull City and Stoke City.

Having been tipped to leave Old Trafford in the recent past, it now appears the former Aston Villa player is a vital part of van Gaal’s plans. The only question is: Who will feature when United’s more recognised full-backs Rafael and Luke Shaw are back in contention.

Vincent Ralph

After graduating with a degree in English Literature, Vincent completed a NCTJ-accredited qualification in newspaper and magazine journalism in 2005. He has worked for HITC for four years and is now Head of Editorial and Journalist Standards.